Legal

Nine West to File for Bankruptcy, Sell Intellectual Property
April 6, 2018 at 1:55 pm

Footwear retailer Nine West is preparing to file for bankruptcy by as early as this week, according to a report Thursday. Aside from the bankruptcy filing, the White Plains, New York, company is planning to sell its intellectual property to Authentic Brands Group, a licensing firm that recently said it would purchase clothing brand Nautica, Reuters…

Target Settles Claims it Discriminated Against Blacks, Hispanics in Hiring Practices
April 6, 2018 at 1:27 pm

Target Corp has agreed to review its policies for screening job applicants and pay $3.74 million to settle a lawsuit claiming its use of criminal background checks kept thousands of blacks and Hispanics from obtaining employment. The preliminary settlement filed on Thursday with the U.S. District Court in Manhattan requires a judge’s approval. It resolves claims that…

Winn-Dixie Operator Southeastern Grocers Files for Bankruptcy
March 28, 2018 at 12:41 pm

Southeastern Grocers LLC, the Florida-based operator of supermarket chains Winn-Dixie and Bi-Lo, said on Tuesday it filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection to restructure debt. The company listed assets in the range of $1 billion to $10 billion and liabilities in the range of $1 billion to $10 billion, the Delaware bankruptcy court filing showed.…

Nordstrom Board Rejects Family's Buyout Offer, Terminates Discussions
March 22, 2018 at 3:14 pm

This week, Nordstrom ended buyout discussions with possible buyers. The Seattle Times reports Nordstrom family members were apparently unwilling or unable to substantially boost their $50-a-share offer for the company that bears their name, prompting the retailer’s independent directors Tuesday to terminate buyout discussions. A board committee said in a statement late Tuesday “it could not…

Walgreens Agrees to $5.5M Settlement With Massachusetts
March 21, 2018 at 3:21 pm

Walgreens Co. has agreed to pay $5.5 million to resolve allegations that it overcharged for prescriptions covered by the Massachusetts workers compensation insurance system. State Attorney General Maura Healey said in a statement that the "settlement ensures that Walgreens does not profit from those transactions and will help our state's ongoing efforts to combat the…

NRF, Large Retailers Urge Trump Against China Tariffs
March 19, 2018 at 4:11 pm

Some of the largest brands in retail today sent a letter to President Trump outlining their concerns about the detrimental impact broadly applied tariffs could have on American families. According to the letter, members and the membership teams of the National Retail Federation, Retail Industry Leaders Association, and American Apparel & Footwear Association fought long and hard…

Former Walmart Exec Claims Retailer Has Been Inflating E-Commerce Numbers
March 16, 2018 at 12:05 pm

A new lawsuit from Tri Huynh, a former Walmart business development executive, claims that the retailer is inflating its e-commerce sales numbers in the race to close the gap between itself and its chief rival, Amazon.com. The suit, filed this week in Northern California federal court, alleges that Walmart has been lowering its standards to boost…

The Supreme Court Takes on Online Sales Tax
March 9, 2018 at 11:54 am

In this episode of Retail Right Now, Total Retail's Joe Keenan and Caitlin Sullivan discuss the hot-button issue of online sales tax, which has been in the news recently since the Supreme Court agreed to hear the case of South Dakota v. Wayfair Inc. South Dakota is seeking the authority to collect sales tax for…

Birkenstock Seller Files for Bankruptcy, Blames UGGs
March 6, 2018 at 11:57 am

Walking Co. Holdings Inc., seller of of Birkenstock, ABEO, Merrell and other brands of comfortable shoes, filed for bankruptcy in Delaware, blaming the loss of a key contract for UGG boots for its second restructuring. The company and its affiliates, FootSmart Inc. and sportswear apparel maker Big Dog USA Inc., also filed for bankruptcy in 2009, saying it needed…

Trump Administration Backs States’ Bid to Collect Online Sales Taxes
March 6, 2018 at 11:33 am

The Trump administration on Monday said states should be able to require online retailers to collect sales taxes, backing an appeal by South Dakota at the U.S. Supreme Court that could mean billions of dollars in revenue for state coffers. South Dakota is asking the justices to overturn a 1992 Supreme Court ruling that companies with no…